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Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Getting To 100%

Okay, so I'm a big believer in going my own way. (Yeah, I like the Fleetwood Mac song, so I hope it gets stuck in your head for the rest of the day. And yes, I am evil.)

I write my books how I want. Past tense, present tense, it's all good. Sometimes in the same sentence. Whatevs.

I give my characters whatever I want. Tech gadgets. Wicked-cool paranormal powers. All at the same time. Nothing's too grandiose for me.

I write my query letters however I want. Sure, I follow some standards, but I can do 3 sentences. 8 paragraphs. Whatever, whatever.

I'm comfortable doing that.

And you should be too. I see (well, hear really) so many people trying to figure out what they "should" do and what they "shouldn't." Or what's "right" and what isn't.

Dude. Get yourself to 100% and then go for it. That's my philosophy. And before you start throwing stones, hear me out.

I research my brains out. I know what queries should be. I know what writing should be. I know, I know, I know.

And then I pick and choose which rules I'm going to follow. The big ones? Yeah, I follow (most of) those. The little ones? Whatever.

I go my own way. I get myself to 100% and then I go for it. I get my MS to 100% of what I can/know how to do. And then I send it out. I get my query to 100% of what I can/know how to do. And then I send it out.

And if you're not at 100% on the MS or the query -- dude! Don't send them out. Get there first, so that when the rejections come -- and they will come -- you'll have the confidence to stay in the game.

Go your own way. Get to 100%. Then conquer.

What do you think? Overconfident? Perhaps. Do you need to be at 100% before submitting? How do you think you get there?

Right now I think my novel is at a 80% I've got at least two more drafts before I'll be ready to send it out. I know this. But last night my husband was watching the SNL shorts called "Laser Cats". Yep, it's as bad as it sounds and that's the point. My fear is that I've written "Laser Cats" and I'm too cocky and arrogant to see it.

Just watch Andy Samberg's face as he pitches it to Lorne Michaels.

http://www.nbc.com/video/videos/snl_1445_lasercats.shtml

They keep pitching the movie and each time they up the ante. (Kinda like what I do for every draft)

Yes, you shouldn't send things out until they are 100%. I agree with Stina, it's hard to know when you've gotten there. I think you've just got to do the best you can and send out those queries to see what happens.

First - love, love, love Fleetwood Mac. Unfortunately, I had that album, in vinyl. SIGH!

Second - Great, great, great post. Yeah, I'm all about repeating, repeating, repeating things three times today.

Third - sorry, I told you I was all about threes. I recently read a debut novel with tons of advers, dialogue tags, and whatnot. The rules are a guideline, not a command. I break the ones I want to break. I'm a rebel like that sometimes.

Hey, you have to know the rules to break 'em, right? And, yes, now Fleetwood Mac will be stuck in my head all day. But it's better than what was swishing around up there: "Highway to Hell," after seeing Iron Man 2. But mine is the Glee cast version, just 'cause it's better. ;)

If you don't have at least some confidence, this probably isn't the right calling. I agree with you 100% - if my work isn't at 100% of my abilities, I won't be sending it out. Patience and hard work need to accompany that confidence.

Oh no! Now I'm going to be singing that song all day long! That said, thanks for reminding us to quit worrying and just go with what feels right. Nine times out of ten it'll pay off. (And that last one time, well, hopefully we can learn from mistakes...)

I think it's important to make sure you're 100%. I queried the first time when I wasn't and I feel like I lost the chance to work with some agents (even though I love my current agent). However, after revising I had a hard time accepting that I was at 100% I kept wanting to revise again and again. It's important to give it 100%, but you also need to know when you have to let go.

Okay, so in all srsns, you have given me an epiphany. A real live one, I think I'll go plant a tree...after I finally finish my book and use then thousand sheets of paper. Okay, the epiph though? I've been trying to conquer before I get to 100% and frankly it's exhausting. I thing I shall go into a hermit hut and finish my book. Take a break. Revise said book. Take another break and query said book. See you in five!

Haha. I love Laser cats. In fact, I may have to repost that to FB. Thanks Erinn.

I worked my tail off to get my novel finished before I pitched at a conference- not because I expected that agent would ask for the manuscript that day, but because the better it is, the more confidence I have. I agree that it's all about knowing that you've done the best you can.

Dude, Jon, I'll be at WIBIJ? today, but I'm doing copious amounts of testing and surely won't win. But I'll do it, just because I need to add another dimension to my life.

And that's why I've been absent in the blogosphere too. Testing. It sucks the life right out of me, and I have nothing left for blogs. Sorry guys! I swear I'll catch up soon.

As for getting to 100%, for me, it's a feel thing. I write it. Leave it alone. Revise it heavily (which really means I write it over again by hand) and give it to my barracuda herd, AKA a crit group.

After that I do another heavy edit. Maybe a couple of betas. When the things I'm getting back are personal, I know I'm at 95%.

Then I leave it again. On my final read-through, I fix what doesn't feel right TO ME. Of course there will always be one word to change or an awkward sentence. That's a given. That's why you go through like four editors at a house.

But once I feel right with it, I'm at 100%. You can get there. It's a feel thing, a process.

I remember an old writing professor telling me you have to know the rules before you can break them. I think you do need to be at 100% before submitting. But I think you also need to adapt- if you get a lot of the same 'nos' you should probably re-assess where you are...

This is the best post I've read on writing in a loooooooonnnnngggg time. I've been told I'm too "stubborn". Especially in the writing "world" I read so much that is contrary to who I am (as a person and a writer). Yes, there are the big rules (you should address your query to the correct agent) but I must agree that if you're at 100%, if your story is at 100%, it will be noticed. I've also noticed that the majority of the books on the shelves are those that break the "rules". Hmmm...But, as I heard in a movie once, you have to know the rules before you can break them.Thanks for another great post!And thanks for the song. It's better than the Radio Head song that was stuck in my head...

Oh dear Lord, now I'm singing that song! Too right, go your own way - if you are 100 per cent sure. To get there, I need to do a whole load of research and make sure I'm comfortable with any deviation!

I think after time, I know when I'm at 100%. If I query too early and get forms, the niggling doubt rises and I know to stop and rework something. Sometimes the wip needs to be shelved for major restructuring. sometimes it's just the query. I think if there's any doubts - listen to what they are saying. Doubts being different than lack of confidence.

Okay, the song is in my head, but it's the drum part because I can totally rock it on Rock Band on HARD and I can only do a few songs on that level. So I'm good, and I will probably go play it very soon because it's been a while.

The learning part of getting to 100% is interesting, because yesterday I took a look at a ms I thought was at 100% 6 months ago and things I had learned since then were jumping out at me right and left. And I WANTED to fix them. How else can I show off what I'm learning?Great post, Elana!

I'm kinda like you. My philosophy is let is all wash over me, and whatever I come away with is what I work with. It took awhile to learn what changes to make that critters might offer, cause I don't generally make ALL the changes recommended. I think I'm fairly close to 100%. Probably not totally there but I'm like 98.76% of the way there. lol ;)

For me, I really do think that having 2 novels behind me as I write this current project is contributing to a stronger novel this go-around. Sure it's not perfect and there are a ton of things I could still learn. But I've gotten better with each.

Practice is the only way to get good at anything. And that includes writing.

Thanks--I will be singing Fleetwood Mac all day now. Nice.I loved, loved, loved this post! I feel like I'm getting in the 90% range right now. Almost there. But it is good to hear that you do the best you can and you believe in what you've written. And then you GO FOR IT! Great advice.

p.s. Coming from another teacher, testing does suck! It will all be over soon. :-)

I needed that kick in the butt. I tend to over analyze (everything!). So sometimes I make it about following all the rules and don't just go for it. I love your 100% rule. I've sent out a few 88% and even some 60% pieces, but I know better. Thanks for the jolt.

Great point! I think that 100% of what you are capable of is what's important. I've seen authors who have agents and sold books that use adverbs and have tense issues... guess what, they still sold. Some of the little rules make your writing cleaner and give a copy editor less to correct, sure, but if they break your story or take away from it, it's not going to help you.

I'm all for knowing the rules and knowing when to break them, and other than formatting guidelines and general etiquette, I believe, too, that you can and should stay true to yourself when writing/querying/submitting. I also like the idea of getting to 100% and then going for it, although I think that is potentially troublesome for some writers. A writer friend of mine, who shall remain nameless, is so hung up on an impossible idea of her own 100% that she can't manage to finish a manuscript, no less begin the querying process. I guess like everything else, it's different for everyone.

I don't think the 100% is constant; it keeps growing as your skills increase. What was 100% for me last year may be 90% for me now. Perhaps what really matters is knowing when you've learned as much from a project as you can. Perhaps that's when you reach 100% with it and can let it go, at least for the time being.

I don't even know who That Mac guy is (related to computers at all? It seems not), but I do have Frank Sinatra stuck in my ears now. Thanks for that.You're awesome Elana. I agree. Give it 100%. How do you get there? 1% at a time. Little by little, every day. At the LDS conference, someone in my group told me my story was all wrong for YA: too literary, too long sentences, not enough slang. My bootcamp sargent told me not to pay attention. She loved it. Not 100% of the people who read your work will like it, but if you give it 100% you will, and you'll have the drive to keep going, and next time raise your personal bar.

I so envy your confidence! Yes, I definitely pick and choose which rules to follow and go my own way--I just do it with a big knot of stress in my stomach worrying that I'm screwing everything up. So far I've landed on my feet (though I'm sure I'm halfway to my second ulcer). Got any confidence I can borrow? :)

I love it. And I think you make a great point-even writers who feel they have "done the right thing" end up having to revise and change. So why not go with your gut and do what you think should be done? As long as you stick to the general rules, I think you're on the right track.

Seriously fantastic advice -- and your comment about process is equally valuable. There's a TON of great stuff buried in here. Yep. This post is a keeper and I'm putting it in for our Friday This Week for Writers roud-up. Then I'm tweeting it. You are amazing. And thank you!

Okay, I totally forgive you for the Fleetwood Mac thing. And the Dixie Chicks one, too, since they have a song sort of like that. It's a good thing they're both songs I like.

But I totally agree with you. The problem I see, though, is that most of us think we're at 100% when we're really more like, 60%. Then we work harder, get up to more like, 75%, and think we're 100% again. Sometimes, it takes a few tries before we really are at 100%, and then, once we do get an agent, and even a publisher, it's pretty likely that they're going to tell us that we're really only 40% and need to do TONS more work. Thus goes the cycle.

But this is not a bad thing, necessarily. Every ounce of effort involved in the work will stay ingrained in us, and hopefully, help us grow into better, more awesomesauce writers. Whatever. Ya know?

We just have to heed your words and survive. We can do hard things. We can.

Elana, I recently spent time with a friend who is stifled with 100 percent. I'm trying to encourage her to try for 98. :) But I do know what you mean. It's really more about finding your own 100, which is a powerful and important message.

With writing, there are so many rules and tips out there. Again, I take whatever fits my writing. Even when I'm getting critiqued, I sift through the advice to figure out what will work and what won't.

I can't fit the mold and follow all the examples. Then my writing wouldn't be mine.

This was perfect for me today. I had an agent crit the first chapter of my ms at the NESCBWI over the weekend, and although I had already completely revised it, (or maybe because I had) it felt really uncomfortable for me. It gave me the feeling that I need to GO BIG all the time. Really BIG. I think it was just the act of sitting across from an agent. I'm psyched!! Shoot for the Freakin' stars!! Woo-hoo!!!

It is so true that 100% changes. My 100% is so different than it was last year. There is a short story that I probably would have thought was 100% last year but this year I keep working on it because I want it to be 100%.

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